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Hannah Curwood - sky above horse below

a voice as naturally effortless as her charm; 2007 is the year that Hannah Curwood will make her welcome appearance on the NZ musical map. Hailing from the stark central otago landscape, Hannah's finely crafted songs reflect both her rural upbringing and her more recent years in the grey streets of Dunedin. Hannah's debut album Sky Above Horse Below, produced by Hannah with the help of Graeme Downes, was mixed and mastered at AUDIOWORKSHOP by Dale Cotton (HDU, Dimmer, Paul McLaney, Die! Die! Die etc). Featuring 11 tracks, Hannah explores a range of sounds, from guitar driven indie rock to shuffling alt country, from loud drums and abrasive bass to soaring walls of delicate strings. Her floating vocals are evocative of the blue skies and deep lakes in her hometown of Wanaka, or to be more precise, Luggate, which you'll need an extremely detailed map to locate. Referred to by the locals as Luggat, Hannah has used this in-joke to create her very own record label, Luggat Records. She is possibly the only person in New Zealand who finds this funny. An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, Hannah has been performing since the age of 11. She helped to write the Mount Aspiring College school song at 12, although she claims she was not wholly responsible. The song is still performed today. She has also had choral works performed by the Central Otago Choir and appeared on TV2's National Anthem in 2004. Music aficionados have had their first taste of Hannah's voice as a backing vocalist on Paul Mclaney's 2006 album Edin. Her band, Omi, boasts members of Dunedin acts The Tomahawks and Gestalt Switch. Sky Above Horse Below is due for release mid April, after which, man and dog in tow, Hannah is playing shows from Dunedin to Auckland, where she plans to settle for a while.